Narra
by No One's Fool
Summary: They told me you'd died," Narra said, finally finding her voice. Her eyes filled with hot, angry, hurt tears. "They said that you'd died saving Sheppard's life."
1. Part 1

**I'm sorry if this is a little stupid/hard to follow/ridiculous, but I can't help myself. I just love Ford so much and I can't believe they just killed him off like that. I just can't believe it. :stews angrily:**

**Anywho, this came to me during a sleepover at my friends', so thank you Jenny!**

**Set after "Childhood's End"**

Lieutenant Aidan Ford had never felt so old in his entire life. Normally he didn't feel old. He was one of the youngest members of the military on Atlantis. But among the natives of this particular planet, he felt ancient. Most of them weren't even over twenty.

"Lieutenant," the intercom in Aidan's ear crackled to life as Sheppard spoke. "It could be a while. Stay close."

"Yessir," Aidan answered. He tugged his cap lower over his eyes as he felt the curious stares of half a dozen teenage girls nearby. He gave them a polite nod as he walked past, hoping that they wouldn't follow. Taking a covert glance behind him after a few seconds, he saw that there was no such luck. One of the girls ran to catch up to him.

"Are you really twenty-five?" she asked breathlessly, her innocent brown eyes open wide.

Aidan felt the familiar awkwardness that often accompanied people of the opposite sex talking to him. "Yes," he answered succinctly.

The girl's eyes widened even more, if that was possible. "I've never met anyone older than twenty-four summers," she whispered.

"How old are you?" Aidan asked, just because he was being polite.

"Fourteen summers," the girl answered proudly. A little boy came over, sucking his thumb, and stared up at Aidan with wide brown eyes so like the girls' that they had to be related. The girl followed his gaze. "This is Dilin. He's my little brother. Dilin, don't bother him," she told her little brother fiercely when the boy reached out to touch the gun Aidan carried. Dilin promptly began to cry, huge tears falling down his chubby little cheeks.

"It's all right," Aidan answered. He knelt down, popping the magazine out and stowing it in his vest pocket, and handed the gun to the little boy after making sure that the safety was on and that there was no bullet chambered. "Be careful with it, kid," he cautioned. Dilin held the gun like it was a sacred relic, removing his thumb from his mouth in order to clutch the weapon in both hands, his tears forgotten.

"You're good with kids," the girl mused. "Come with me. Dilin, will you give the nice man his…thing back?" Dilin obligingly held out the gun and Aidan took it with a smile and a thank you for the kid. "We're one of the villages that adhere to the old ways," the girl explained as she led Aidan into a small hut. A little girl sat on a bed in the corner, tears shining in her huge hazel eyes. She didn't cry, though. In fact, she made no noise at all. "Her mother went through the ceremony four days ago, and Narra hasn't eaten since. She will barely drink." The girl looked at Aidan seriously. "Can you help her?"

Aidan shrugged. "I can try." He went over and knelt in front of the little girl. "Hey," he said softly. The girl looked at him with tears trembling in the corners of her eyes, but she refused to let them out or say a single word. She seemed curious, though, watching him carefully. "I'm Aidan," he added, settling onto the bed next to her. "What's your name?"

"Narra," the girl whispered, barely audibly. Her eyes were glued onto his face. The other girl looked relieved, and ducked out of the hut.

Aidan bent down to look Narra in the eye. "It's nice to meet you, Narra. Can you tell me how old you are?"

"F-four," Narra stuttered, fighting back tears.

"Four," Aidan repeated, as if it were an incredibly remarkable age. "You're so grown up." Narra smiled slightly, revealing tiny white baby teeth. "Why are you so upset, Narra?"

Narra burst into tears. "Momma's gone," she wailed. "She told me to be good for Aunt Kaera an' that she was going away. Aunt Kaera says I'll never see her again."

Biting his lip, Aidan wondered what to do next. He settled with pulling the little girl into his lap and holding her close, frowning as he felt her tiny body trembling against him as she tried not to cry. "You'll see her again," he consoled her, feeling her hot and fierce tears against his neck, where her small face was buried in his collarbone. "Your mother has gone to a better place, Narra, and she wouldn't want you to be so sad."

Narra sat up, sniffing and wiping her eyes on the back of her hand. "She wouldn't?"

"She wouldn't," he assured her, putting a forefinger under her chin and marveling at how large his hand looked compared to her face. "And she would want you to eat, too." He dug around in his vest pocket, pulling out a bar of chocolate. "Here, try some of this. It's really good." He handed her a square of the sweet, and she hesitantly put it in her mouth. Her eyes grew large and round and she smiled.

"It _is_ good," she agreed quietly. Aidan got to his feet, and Narra stood up as well. She reached her arms up expectantly, and after a second Aidan picked her up and held her like he'd seen mothers do in movies. Narra wrapped her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck and rested her head on his shoulder, promptly falling asleep. He wondered what to do now and, after a few minutes of deliberation, eventually just left the hut with Narra still in his arms.

The older girl, who had to be Kaera, waited outside. "You got her to eat?" She asked worriedly.

Aidan shrugged, careful not to wake the little girl. "Sort of. She had some chocolate, which isn't technically food. When she wakes up, I'll see if I can coax her to eat something more substantial."

Kaera smiled as she looked at him. "She's never done that to anyone but her mother," she said, obviously referring to how Narra was holding onto him. "She must really like you."

"Lieutenant!" Sheppard said, and Aidan whirled, doing his best to stand to attention without waking the little girl he held. Sheppard did a double take at the sight of his lieutenant holding a child, and then he smiled. "Having fun?" Aidan refused to answer, and Sheppard smiled. "I'd say she likes you, Ford."

"Her mother underwent the ceremony four days ago," Aidan explained. "She wouldn't eat, so this young woman asked me to try to help. And look where it got me." He was kidding, of course. He rather liked the feeling of holding the little girl. It almost made him want to become a parent. Almost.

"Weir radioed. It's time to go," Sheppard informed him. Aidan nodded, and gently shook Narra awake. The little girl raised her head sleepily, blinking in the sunlight. Her eyes saw Sheppard, and she shrank against Aidan in fear.

"It's all right, Narra," Aidan reassured her. "This is my friend. His name is Sheppard. He's nice, and he won't hurt you. I promise." Sheppard looked amused again, but didn't comment. "I want you to go to your Aunt Kaera, okay? I have to go back to _my_ home now. Be a good girl." Narra shook her head and hugged Aidan more tightly, refusing to let go. Aidan sighed, trying to loosen her arms without hurting her. "Narra, go back to Kaera."

"Don't wanna," Narra answered sulkily, pouting. Aidan successfully loosened her grasp on him and gave her back to her aunt. Narra immediately started crying. Aidan turned to follow Sheppard, only to hear Kaera curse loudly and Narra's triumphant noise before her little arms wrapped around one leg. He glanced back to see Kaera nursing a red mark on her arm that was about the size of Narra's mouth. "Wanna come wif you," Narra informed Aidan.

Aidan shot a pleading glance at Sheppard, who shrugged. "We'll see what Weir says." He tapped his earpiece. "Sheppard to Atlantis," he said.

"Yes, John?" Weir asked.

Sheppard looked at Aidan as he spoke, amusement in his voice. "There's a little girl here who's taken a liking to the good lieutenant, and she refuses to stay. Her mother's dead. Any ideas?" This wasn't quite what Aidan had been asking for, but he didn't comment.

Weir thought for a few seconds. "Well…I don't usually suggest things like this, because Atlantis is no place for a child, but go ahead and bring her back. Aidan will take care of her while he's not offworld, and I'll keep an eye on her while he is." Aidan barely heard her chuckle. "She sounds like she's very attached to you, lieutenant."

Aidan shrugged. "I don't know why." He tapped his earpiece off and picked up Narra. "Okay, you get to come with me," he told her. She grinned. "Just don't expect to always get your way in the future," he added. Narra only smiled again, sweetly nodding. Kaera looked relieved as she understood what was happening. "I'll take good care of her," Aidan told the older girl. Kaera nodded.

The team arrived back on Atlantis within minutes. Dr. Weir was waiting for them in the gate room, as usual. Narra looked around with wide eyes, holding tightly onto Aidan's hand. "Why, Aidan!" Elizabeth said, grinning, "I had no idea you had it in you."

Aidan rolled his eyes. That night, he showed Narra where she was sleeping. "See this? This is your bed, okay?"

Narra climbed into her little bed, which was currently in the large storage closet in his quarters. She snuggled down into the comforters as Aidan pulled them up to her chin. "'Night," she murmured sleepily, her eyes closing. Almost immediately her breathing evened out, and she was asleep. Aidan watched her sleeping for a few seconds then went into his own room and pulled off his shirt, climbing into his own bed. He too fell asleep in a matter of seconds.

…Only to be awakened again a few hours later when Narra burrowed into the blankets next to him, trembling. "What is it?" he demanded, half-asleep and wondering what was the matter with her.

"Scary night pictures," Narra whimpered, burying her small face in his chest.

She'd had a nightmare. Is this what all parents felt like, sort of angry that they'd been woken from a sound sleep but more worried about the little one that was crying? "It was just a dream," he reassured her, stroking her hair with one hand while trying to rub the sleep from his eyes with the other. Narra's sobs slowly ceased as she began to fall asleep again, and Aidan sighed. "You can sleep with me tonight, but don't get used to it," he told her unconscious form. She only snuggled closer in her sleep. He lay awake for nearly three hours, terrified of rolling over in his sleep and smothering the little girl. Eventually he managed to sleep, but only fitfully.

Aidan woke again to find himself on his back, with Narra kneeling on his chest and staring intently into his face. He barely suppressed a shout of surprise when he opened his eyes to see her face a mere six inches away. She smiled brightly when he groaned, and she sat up. "I had a scary night picture last night," she announced.

"I know," Aidan grunted, grabbing a pillow to put over his face.

"I'm hungry!" Narra said, climbing off his chest (at last!) and bouncing on the bed next to him. "Wake up, wake up!"

"I'm awake," he said as he reluctantly sat up and put the pillow to the side. Aidan got out of bed, pulling his shirt over his head and stepping into his boots. After tugging his baseball cap onto his head, he offered his hand to Narra. "Let's get you some breakfast, kiddo," he said. Narra slipped her tiny hand into his, and he led the way to the mess hall.

Teyla was the only one of SGA-1 up at this god-forsaken hour, and she smiled as Narra immediately went for the sugary breakfast foods. Aidan impatiently let her choose one sweet item, then insisted that she eat more healthy food and chose an apple-type thing from the mainland. Narra then ran over to where Teyla sat, climbing into the chair next to her and waiting for Aidan to arrive with their breakfast. "Good morning, Aidan," Teyla said with a smile. Aidan merely grunted, setting Narra's breakfast in front of her. "Didn't you sleep well?"

"No," he answered, taking a drink of his extra-strong coffee. "She had a nightmare and woke me up. I don't suppose you've ever slept with a kid, but she kept me awake all night. I was afraid I'd kill her by rolling over or something."

Teyla smiled and put her hand on his arm. "I have never had a child, Aidan, but I am told that they are rewarding. You've had parenthood thrust upon you before you were quite ready."

"I'm not her parent," Aidan protested.

"Perhaps not, but you are the closest thing she has to a father now," Teyla replied. They both looked at where Narra was looking at the apple-thing dubiously, obviously unsure of how to go about eating it.

"I'll cut that for you," Aidan said, grabbing the knife from his leg and slicing the fruit into little, Narra-size bites. "There you go, kiddo," he said, smiling as Narra nervously put a piece in her mouth, then made a delighted sound and started shoveling it in. "I hope you're right," he added to Teyla, who merely smiled once more.

"Ford!" Sheppard said, entering the dining hall. "What are you doing up at this ungodly hour?"

Aidan merely grunted once more. "Narra had a nightmare and kept him awake all night," Teyla explained.

"Ah," Sheppard said, wincing sympathetically. "Them's the dumps, eh?" He looked at Narra, who smiled in her adorable way. Sheppard seemed to melt. "She's so cute, though. You can't be mad at her?"

"Nah," Aidan replied, wiping a drop of apple-thing juice from Narra's chin.

People around Atlantis quickly grew used to seeing Narra following Aidan around, and he found, to his amusement, that she seemed to attract women wherever she went. He didn't care for any of them, so they were more of a nuisance than people he wanted to attract, but he had to smile every time someone came up and gushed about how cute she was. The year passed slowly. Aidan made sure that Narra never referred to him as her father. He didn't want her to forget her real parents. But he was flattered that she preferred him to everyone else on Atlantis, including the other members of his team and Elizabeth, not to mention that technician with the English accent that Aidan could never remember the name of that she liked second best. Peter Something-or-other.

Despite Aidan's words about not sleeping with him every night, Narra crawled into his bed around five days a week, either after having a nightmare or because she was afraid of the dark. Aidan quickly grew used to her presence, and got the hang of sleeping with a child even more quickly out of necessity. She was also terrified of storms, he found one day when a large one rolled through and Narra refused to let go of him. She trembled until it was over.

But soon after the year had passed, the Wraith attacked Atlantis. Narra was immediately confined to her quarters, which were still Aidan's closet. And when Aidan got the overdose of Wraith enzyme and disappeared, the other people on Atlantis were left to the raise the once-more-heartbroken girl without him. Narra didn't speak for nearly two years after he left, and when she did she was no longer the happy, carefree little girl that she had once been.

Twenty years passed. Atlantis made its spectacular return to Earth, and then returned to the Pegasus galaxy where it belonged. Narra stayed on Atlantis, her memory of the man that had cared for her faint but still there. Sometimes, she could remember tidbits of things she'd seen as a child. She saw a face that loved her, heard a voice that she could hear the fondness in. She never forgot Aidan Ford, and was content to live with mere memories of him.

But one day, all that changed.

_End Part 1_


	2. Part 2

_Part 2_

Narra was in her rooms when she heard the gate siren blaring. She looked up from her book and frowned, then stuck her bookmark in and rose. She ran into the new SGA-1 leader, a man named Koperski, on her way to the gate room. "Joel, what's going on?" she asked.

Colonel Koperski, or Joel to his friends, shrugged. "I don't know. Incoming wormhole, apparently."

Narra gave him a tolerant exasperated look. "Well, I know _that_. I have been living in this city for twenty years now, Joel. That's longer than you have."

Sheppard had retired to Earth five years ago, handing the title to Koperski, whom he'd personally trained. Joel grinned. "Well, then let's go find out." Narra smiled and shook her head, following the irrepressible young man. Even after five years, he was still excited by the Stargate. Narra reached the gate room just as Elizabeth Cartwright, a thirty-something woman from Earth who was the new leader of Atlantis, came out of her office to look at the Stargate.

"Who is it?" Narra asked Elizabeth. It had taken her years to get used to calling the woman by the same name that she'd called the first Elizabeth, twenty years before.

The older woman turned, and her face was apprehensive and hopeful at the same time. "Someone you haven't seen for a very long time, if he isn't lying," she answered.

At that moment, a lone figure stepped through the wormhole. Narra couldn't see him very well, but he seemed to be looking around the gate room. "Is Major Sheppard still here?" he asked. Narra cocked her head; his voice sounded kind of familiar.

"John's been retired nearly six years, lieutenant," Elizabeth said, narrowing her eyes at the newcomer. "You don't look any different from the picture in your file," she added. Narra stepped up next to her, but didn't look at the man. She was watching Elizabeth, who was seemed unsure of how to react to the visitor. "I'm Elizabeth Cartwright. I believe that we spoke over the radio."

"I remember. Who's that with you, ma'am?" the man asked, and Narra turned to look at him. Immediately her mind was flooded with images of the man who had raised her for the happiest year of her life. Elizabeth was right; he hadn't aged a day.

Elizabeth went down to the floor level, taking Narra's hand to lead her along. "Aidan, I'm sure you remember Narra," she said softly.

Lieutenant Aidan Ford stared at Narra, his mouth hanging slightly open. "Narra?" he asked, almost stupidly. Narra nodded, unsure of what to say to the man she barely remembered from her childhood. "The last time I saw you, you were this big," Aiden told her, holding his hand about three and a half feet above the floor.

"They told me you'd died," Narra said, finally finding her voice. Her eyes filled with hot, angry, hurt tears. "They said that you'd died saving Sheppard's life. Why didn't you come back sooner? I was five, Lieutenant Ford, and you left me alone. For the second time in my life, I lost the person I loved most. And don't think that you can just waltz in here like nothing's happened, mister, because you can't." She sent a glare at a very surprised Aidan, then turned on her heel and marched off, making sure he wasn't following her. As soon as the doors closed she broke into a run, dashing into her quarters and throwing herself across the bed to sob.

Elizabeth Weir had lied to her. She had told Narra that Aidan was dead; that he hadn't gotten out of the hive before it exploded; that she was alone once again. Of course, Elizabeth had had no way of knowing for sure, so maybe she hadn't lied. Sheppard had told her the same thing. Teyla had merely comforted her, and McKay had avoided her at all costs. The doctor had never really liked her, probably because he wasn't good with kids.

Three hours later, after she'd scrubbed the tears from her face, she went to the infirmary to get some medicine for the massive headache she'd gotten. The doctor there handed her two Tylenol and a glass of water, and Narra downed the pills. She'd just finished the water when she heard someone speak behind her. "You've grown up, Narra," Aidan said sadly. Narra whirled. Aidan was staring at her with something like remorse.

"You know, you're not as tall as I thought you were," Narra retorted coldly, still determined to be angry at him. "I don't want to talk to you right now. Good bye." She stalked from the infirmary, going to the north balcony for some fresh air and a little peace and quiet so she could think.

Aidan Ford was nearly fifty-five, yet he didn't look a day over twenty-six. And then there was his eye. Narra didn't remember him having a strange eye, so it must have happened after he left. There was also a scar around that eye, so maybe he'd gotten injured. Either way, she didn't remember it.

"I'm sorry."

Narra whirled to see Aidan standing beside her. "How did you find me here?" she demanded.

He smiled slightly. "When you were little, you'd always come here. It was a lucky guess." Narra turned away, putting her back to him as a not-so-subtle hint to leave her alone. "Look, Narra, I'm sorry that they told you I was dead. But I had no control over that!"

"But you weren't dead!" Narra returned, and to her horror tears began to fall from her eyes. "You were still alive, obviously. Why didn't you come back to Atlantis? Why didn't you come back to _me_? Did you ever love me at all?"

Aidan's eyes instantly hardened slightly. "Don't turn this on me, Narra. I loved you more than you know. I cared for you for a year, or did you forget? I never thought of myself as your father, but I treated you like I would a daughter if I had one. It was because of you that I didn't come back."

"That's-" and Narra said a not-so-nice word beginning with 'B' and ending with 'T.' Normally she abhorred crude words like that, but she was angry enough that it slipped out. "You abandoned me, Aidan. I thought of you as my father; after I lost my mother, you were the one to comfort me. _You_ were the one to take my mind off my pain. _You_ were the one that helped me get on with life, when I was too young to understand. You never let me forget about my mother, and you never let me call you 'Dad.' I remember that, at least. But you left me here, and for that I don't think I'll ever forgive you."

Aidan clenched his jaw, closing his eyes as if to compose himself. "Will you at least let me explain why I stayed away?" Narra folded her arms but didn't say no. Aidan went on. "When I left Atlantis, I was addicted to Wraith enzyme. I don't know if they told you that." Narra nodded; they had, which was why they'd never allowed her to visit him before he left. "After I left, I found ways of getting the enzyme. I had a huge store of it. But then the hive happened. I saved Sheppard's life, yes, and I barely escaped alive myself. I went back to the planet I'd begun to call home and lived there, alone. I'd lost most of my men; they'd either run off or been killed by the Wraith. For a while I contemplated coming back to Atlantis. I wanted to return, but I didn't want you to see me like that, addicted to an enzyme that had me firmly under its control. So I stayed. Eventually I ran out of the enzyme. I went through withdrawal. You know what withdrawal is?"

Narra nodded. "Of course," she said. "So what happened then?" She was disgusted with the curiosity in her voice; she didn't want him to think that she'd forgiven him, because she hadn't.

"I came back. I was off the enzyme, and for the first time I felt like a real person again." Aidan's voice was quiet. "So I did some searching around and figured out where Atlantis was, and what its gate address was as well. Then, I dialed Atlantis and sent a message telling them what had happened. Dr. Cartwright was kind enough to allow me to return home."

"I'm still angry with you," Narra reminded him, but there was no venom behind her words. All she felt was tired now, not angry.

Aidan smiled slightly. "I understand your anger. I would be, too. I'm sorry I wasn't there to watch you grow up, Narra."

"So why aren't you old?" Narra asked, desperate for a subject change.

Aidan shrugged. "Something about the Wraith enzyme halts aging. Now that I'm off of it, I'll either start aging at a normal rate or at an accelerated one. The doctors are still running tests on the blood samples they took."

The day passed slowly. Narra ran into Aidan a few times. Since Narra was the only one on Atlantis who had known Aidan before, no one else knew who he was or why he was there. Narra merely acknowledged his presence in the hall or room, but ignored him other than that. She was still determined to be angry at him, but her anger was slowly melting away.

Finally, at the end of the day, Narra broke down and went to find Aidan. He was on the north balcony, leaning on the rail and watching the waves with something like thoughtfulness on his face. He didn't look up as she stepped out onto the balcony, but his hands tightened on the rail. "More accusations, Narra?" His voice was pleasant, but his body was stiff.

Narra shook her head, knowing he couldn't see her. She stepped up next to him, and he glanced at her before going back to looking at the night sky. Narra took a calming breath. "I'm sorry," she said quietly. He looked at her sharply, turning to face her, but some of the tension left his frame. "I shouldn't have accused you," she added. "It's just that Dr. Weir told me that you were dead, and it was a massive shock seeing you again."

Aidan nodded. "I don't blame her for thinking that; I would have thought the same thing. And I don't blame you for being angry with me, Narra. In the same situation I would have been angry with me, too."

Narra took a deep breath before speaking again. "I will never think of you like a father again, Aidan," she said. Aidan looked at her with sadness deep in his gaze. "But," she went on, "I'd like to be friends. We're practically the same age, now." She stuck out her hand, hoping that he wouldn't ignore her. "Friends?"

She shouldn't have worried. Aidan smiled, taking her hand and shaking it. "Friends," he nodded. He glanced at his watch, then. "I have to get back to the infirmary. The doctors told me to come back in six hours to see the results of the blood tests, and I'm about half an hour past that." Narra nodded, unsure of what to do now that they were past the years of resentment. Aidan stopped, turning. "Would you like to come with me?"

Narra nodded, and then walked quickly to stand next to him. The walk back to the infirmary was pleasant. Aidan wanted to catch up with her life for the past twenty years, so Narra spent the whole time filling him on what had happened while he was gone. "I decided to stay on Atlantis, even though Sheppard offered to take me back to Earth," she finished.

"You mean, Atlantis actually went back to Earth?" Aidan asked. Narra nodded. He grinned ruefully. "Wish I could've seen it."

Narra shrugged. "I was nine, and it scared me to death," she replied. She smiled at the doctors as they entered the infirmary.

Dr. Cartwright was waiting. "Did you two get things sorted out?" she asked. Narra and Aidan both nodded, more or less at the same time. "Good. It almost broke my heart to see you fighting after all these years." Narra blushed; she'd been the biggest culprit, fighting-wise. "I take it that you're here to see the results of the tests?" Elizabeth directed her question at Aidan, who nodded.

The head doctor pulled out a file and flipped through the pages. "Well, the initial results look good. The Wraith enzyme is completely out of your system. The blood shows no sign of accelerated aging at this point, so I think that you're in the clear." Aidan visibly relaxed, and Narra smiled. The doctor smiled as well, and then went back to the file. "I think you should come in every couple days, just to make sure, but you should be fine." He looked up once more. "How about two days from now, at noon?" Aidan nodded. "Okay, good. Just don't eat first. You're cleared to go."

Aidan turned and, after waiting for Narra to catch up, left the infirmary. Narra walked beside and slightly behind him, looking at him contemplatively. "Am I that different?" he asked without turning, a grin in his voice.

Narra blushed, not having known that he could tell she was staring at him. "No, I just haven't seen you since I was four. When you're that age, everyone looks so big to you. I just never thought that you would only be a couple inches taller than me. In my mind, you were a giant." They stopped walking. Narra let her eyes wander over him again, and then cocked her head. His shirt was snug against his torso, revealing toned muscles. "You're in very good shape. Most of the military guys don't look like that."

Aidan laughed. "Twenty years is a long time on a planet with nothing to do. I exercised a lot to fill the time, Narra." Narra smiled slightly, taking a step backward. "Where are you going?" he asked, apparently curious.

"It's late," Narra explained. "These are my quarters, and I'm gonna go to bed. See you in the morning, Aidan," she said, then went into her room and closed the door. Falling back on her bed, she stared at the ceiling and thought about Aidan.

In her memories, she'd loved him like she would have her father, had she known him. But that was the past. This was the present. And she didn't love him like a father anymore. She wasn't sure how she felt about him. Narra had noticed that he was relatively handsome, which kind of made her uncomfortable. She was supposed to think of him like a father, not like a potential boyfriend. "Yeesh, girl, get a hold of yourself," she whispered, smacking herself on her forehead. Getting up, she pulled on her pajamas and went to brush her teeth. Then she pulled her hair into a loose ponytail and climbed into bed once more, this time curling up under the covers and falling asleep.

She woke with a gasp, sitting up to find herself covered in sweat. She hadn't had a nightmare in years, and that one had been particularly nasty as if making up for not showing up sooner. Swinging her feet to the floor, she pulled on her robe and went to the north balcony, where she lifted her face to the wind and let the sounds of the waves wash the memories of her scary dream away.

"Are you all right?" a quiet voice asked from a few feet away. Narra pulled her robe more tightly around her and whirled to face the person, relaxing when she saw Aidan.

"I had a nightmare," she admitted. "The first one in years." She shuddered. "It was a pretty bad one, too."

Aidan pushed himself away from the rail and came over. "You used to crawl in bed with me after a nightmare," he said. Narra's eyes widened, and he hurriedly held up his hands. "I'm not suggesting you do that now, Narra, don't worry."

"Why are you still up?" Narra asked. "It's the middle of the night."

Aidan shrugged. "I couldn't sleep. I used to come up here to think." He turned to look at the moon, which was nearly full. "The stars all look different now," he said softly. "I'm not used to this night sky. It's much different than the one I spent the last twenty years seeing. Has it really been twenty years?" he asked, but it was as if he was asking himself so Narra didn't answer. Aidan went back to addressing Narra. "I've turned into something of a night owl over the years. I find that night is the best time to think."

"I've always had trouble sleeping," Narra agreed. "When I was younger, like younger then eleven, I would wake up every night with a nightmare. Eventually the resident psychiatrist here on Atlantis was able to find the source of my nightmares, which was watching my mother go through the ceremony that took her life, and they mostly stopped. Now I go years between nightmares, instead of one every night."

Weeks passed. Aidan was no longer considered a military man and was treated as a civilian, but he never gave up the morning runs or the hours spent in the exercise room. Narra joined him on the runs but never in the weight room, having no desire to make a fool of herself in front of the military types. And slowly, but surely, she found herself falling for Aidan. He had changed in the twenty years he'd been gone; the young man he'd been was gone, replaced by an older, wiser version. His episode with the Wraith enzyme had left him much more mature. Narra had never met anyone like him, and at first she had no idea what was happening. Then, one day, she found herself very uncomfortable with him. She felt shy and stumbled over her words a lot, making her blush. Aidan didn't seem to notice.

Eventually she confided in Dr. Cartwright. "What do you do when you think you're falling for someone?" she asked.

Elizabeth got up and shut the door, as if making sure no one was listening. "Everyone is different, Narra," she answered. "I guess you would work out how strong your feelings are. What do you feel like when you're with this person?"

Narra shrugged. "Shy, I guess. And I always feel like I make a fool of myself, because I can't talk right when I'm near him."

Elizabeth nodded in understanding. "Sounds like you have it bad, dear," she smiled, half-hugging Narra. "Well, sweetie, you can always just tell him how you feel, or just wait for him to find out. Most likely he will, eventually." Narra nodded and got up to leave, but stopped when Elizabeth added, "Aidan's a good man, Narra. He would never willingly hurt you." Narra blushed.

"Is it that obvious?"

Elizabeth got up and walked over to stand next to Narra. "I suspected," she answered. "But I wasn't sure until you came in here. You could do much, much worse, my girl," she said with a grin. "Just go about life as usual."

Narra left Elizabeth's office feeling much better now that she'd spoken to someone about things. But going about life as usual was hard when Narra felt so _un_usual. She was tongue-tied whenever she tried to talk to Aidan, who thankfully never seemed to notice. The only time she felt like herself with him was during their late night talks. Whenever Narra couldn't sleep, she went to the north balcony, where Aidan almost always was. There they talked about nonsense things until Narra felt tired enough to sleep and said good night.

One night, Narra went to the balcony as usual. She was alone at first, staring at the darkening sky. "There's gonna be a storm," she murmured to herself. She didn't exactly _hate_ storms, but she certainly didn't love them. She was still scared of them. It was something that she'd never gotten over as a child. She hugged herself as the wind got a little colder.

"Pretty, isn't it?" Aidan asked from beside her. Narra jumped; she hadn't heard him arrive. He grinned at her. "Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you."

Narra smiled. "It's okay. Yes, it is pretty." It began to rain, and she was suddenly thankful that this particular balcony was covered. Then lightning flashed and thunder rolled across the sky, and Narra cringed.

"You still afraid of storms?" Aidan asked, stepping closer to her.

Narra blushed. "No, I-" Lightning flashed again and she bit down a scream, making a strangled yelping noise. "Yes," she admitted.

Aidan pulled her into his arms, and she hid her face in his shoulder, supremely embarrassed and terrified at the same time. "Hey," he said as she whimpered, "it's okay. The lightning won't hurt you, Narra." He frowned as she trembled against him. "Narra, you're gonna be fine," he added. After a couple of minutes, when the fear began to subside, Narra hesitantly lifted her face from where it was buried against his collarbone. She had to admit, the rain was pretty. She looked up at Aidan, who took a deep breath. "Narra," he started, then broke off. Narra didn't say anything. Leaning forward slightly, he gently touched her mouth with his, just the barest brush of lips against hers. When Narra didn't object, he kissed her again, harder this time. Narra relaxed against him until he pulled away.

"Aidan," she started to whisper, but he placed a finger across her lips.

"Shh," he replied. "Look, the rain's almost stopped." His eyes met hers. For a few seconds, the only sound was that of the rain, still falling with the occasional clap of thunder. "You asked me if I ever loved you, Narra," he said softly. "I have loved you since the moment I met you, only recently a little bit differently." He kissed her again. "If you're not ready for this kind of relationship, tell me," he whispered.

Narra hugged him, burying her face in his shoulder. "I'm ready," she said softly. "I've been ready for weeks now." She took a deep breath. "I love you, Aidan," she added.

Aidan chuckled. "I love you, too, Narra."


End file.
